HEXI was surprised to learn that this was made solely by one guy, Thomas Happ, he was the artist, programmer, writer and musician all rolled into one mega-developer.

BAJOYeah, that's some multi-talent right there! But it also took him five years to make this game.

HEXIt's the far future world of 2005, and you play as Trace, a scientist who finds himself stuck in some strange alien world after an experiment goes wrong.

BAJOThen you're thrown straight into this weird world with nothing but the shirt on your back, and pants.

HEXYes, although there is an easter egg that let's you take your pants off.

BAJOWell, I think pants should be optional in every game. Pants or no pants though, you set off exploring finding new weapons and power ups to try and unlock new parts of the world.

HEXIt's super traditional Metroid exploration - even the style of map is the same as Metroid. Although the map is probably my only real complaint, I just got a bit frustrated with it towards the end of the game. There's no objective markers anywhere, and no guide to what equipment or powers will unlock doors. You just have to find your own way and try and remember where everything is for yourself.

BAJOI didn't mind that though, and I thought the game was pretty good at signposting where to go. You do always have to keep a mental picture of the world in your mind but I always knew of some new area I had to go and explore. I was never really lost.

HEXI felt lost for ages! There were a few times where I ended up just going completely the wrong way, and had almost no idea where to go to next. Just like a little arrow or something to point me in the right direction would've been nice.

BAJOBut that's part of the experience Hex, a sense of mystery and exploration - not knowing where to go. Being frustrated. Anytime I did end up going the wrong way or backtracking there was always some little secret I'd find along the way so I was always making progress.

HEXIt is really hard to find some of those secrets though isn't it?

BAJOYeah, well they are called secrets.

HEXYeah, I'm saying it's really good that they're so well hidden because it feels really rewarding when you do actually discover one. For example you have this mining drill that can break through special bits of wall, but secret walls don't give you any hint that they're there.

BAJOYes, the best you can hope for is something in the level design or platforming that hints that there's a secret passage nearby. There's no cracked bricks or anything like that, so I just ended up drilling almost every wall just in case...

HEXTell me about it! I think I extended my playtime by at least a few hours just because of my compulsive need to drill!

BAJOThese are the things us gamers do.

HEXEven so, by the end of the game my final stats showed that even though I'd explored over 90% of the map, I'd only found about two thirds of the items. So many hidden treasures!

BAJOThere's a huge amount of guns and gear to find; and while there are some really cool guns I ended up only using a handful of them - most just felt a bit useless. But a lot of the abilities you unlock are awesome, teleports, grappling hooks, remote drones that look like Snarks from Half life.

HEXAnd you often have to combine them in interesting ways in order to reach new areas. So even when something looked unreachable, usually it just came down to thinking through it a little better.

BAJOThe disrupter gun is my favourite Hex, because it basically lets you glitch out part of the game. It lets you access new areas and create platforms, and every enemy can be glitched out too.

HEXYeah, it's a cool idea and it's worth glitching out all of the enemies just to see what happens. It might make enemies spew out health, or move really slowly, and sometimes they even reveal special secrets... although it can just make some hard in a different way.

BAJOWhat did you think of the story?

HEXWell, I quite liked it. To be honest, I don't feel like this kind of game needs a truly in-depth story, it just needs an interesting premise and it's got that. And there's some fun little twists and turns in there too.

BAJOYeah, for me these kind of games live or die on how well they can create intrigue and mystery with their level design and art. And in that respect I think he's nailed it, there're some great locations and the soundtrack really sets the mood. It's a world you want to explore and learn about.

HEXAbsolutely. We should probably wrap this up though - final thoughts?

BAJOIt feel like this was a game which got lost in the 80's and it's only just been uncovered. It's a great mix of nostalgia and timeless design. I'm giving it 4.5.

HEXYeah, I agree! This is the best Super Metroid since Super Metroid. And I'm amazed one guy did it all. I'm giving it 4 out of 5.